Northwest Missouri is preseason No. 1 in Division II football poll
Northwest Missouri State is projected to pick up where it left off last season.
The Bearcats are No. 1 in the American Football Coaches Association preseason poll, receiving 31 of 32 first-place votes.
Northwest completed a 15-0 season in 2013 with a 43-28 victory over Lenior-Rhyne in the NCAA Championship Game.
This season, that game will be played at Sporting Park.
Other MIAA teams in the poll: Pittsburg State at No. 9 and Emporia State tied for 22nd.
Central Missouri, Missouri Western and Washburn received votes, along with Truman State, which competes in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
To reach Blair Kerkhoff, call 816-234-4730 or send email to bkerkhoff@kcstar.com. Follow him on Twitter: @BlairKerkhoff.
American Football Coaches Association preseason poll
1. Northwest Missouri State (31 first-place votes)
2. Grand Valley State (Mich.)
3. Minnesota-Duluth
4. Colorado St.-Pueblo
5. North Alabama
6. Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.)
7. Minnesota State-Mankato
8. Henderson State (Ark.) (1)
9. Pittsburg State
10. West Chester (Pa.)
11. West Texas A&M
12. Shepherd (W.Va.)
13. Ohio Dominican
14. Winston-Salem State (N.C.)
15. St. Cloud State (Minn.)
16. Carson-Newman (Tenn.)
17. Tarleton State (Texas)
18. Indianapolis
19. Delta State (Miss.)
20. Indiana (Pa.)
21. North Carolina-Pembroke
22 (tie). Azusa Pacific (Calif.)
22 (tie). Emporia State
24. Bloomsburg (Pa.)
25. Tuskegee (Ala.)
Among others receiving votes: Central Missouri, Missouri Western, Truman State, Washburn
This story was originally published August 18, 2014 at 1:02 PM with the headline "Northwest Missouri is preseason No. 1 in Division II football poll."